An evening in the life
by Tressa
Summary: A typical evening in the life of Makoto and Haruka after high school.


Title: An evening in the life

Author: Tressa1013

Summery: An evening in the life of Haruka and Makoto.

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. They belong to Kyoto Animation and Kōji Ōji. I'm only borrowing them temporarily. 

Tachibana Makoto was not poetic.

Though to be fair, no one could poetically describe water like Nanase Haruka. His best friend had such a _way_ with water that his ability to describe it could only by called poetry.

He did, however, love swimming. His focus wasn't like Haru's. His friend was moving toward a great future in the world of competitive swimming and it wouldn't be long till they saw his face on television and magazines. Makoto's future wasn't as grand. But it was special for him.

Waving at the pool attendant, he headed toward the spectators area to get settled. It was like this on Fridays. End class, go to the pool, and wait. Grab dinner with his friend, then relax for the evening.

It was like clockwork at this point.

As he settled in his seat, he took a cursory glance at the pool below. Even now, the site of the Olympic size pool made his heart leap a bit. It was a nice pool, he had to admit. A far cry from the outdoor one they'd used in high school. Even better than the one at the ISCR.

Settling himself on the bench, he set his bag down and watched the different workouts taking place in the pool below. It was a small group created by invitation only. One that his friend had been willing to accept when approached by the scouts.

On a white board he could make out barely visible numbers, 200s and 400s. Times scribbled by each indicated the assigned intervals. Large pace clocks sat on the pool deck, providing the swimmers an accurate way to keep track of their intervals. Large mesh bags sat in cluttered heaps near the edge with stray equipment spilling out. It looked like a heaven Haruka would enjoy.

There was something mesmerizing and hypnotic about watching the distance swimmers, he'd come to realize. Their small team at Iwatobi High School had been so focused on sprints and the relay, none of them had ever seriously attempted distance swimming. Haruka's habit of just swimming till he felt like stopping didn't count, either. Makoto himself was a sprinter; his tall build was ideal for sprinting and he'd found his niche with the backstroke. The closest he'd come to even racing a distance race was mid-distance. The 200 free was his downfall as he hadn't properly paced himself and Haru ended up winning.

Leaning forward, he watched the swimmers in the lanes closest. Their powerful, smooth strokes allowed them glide through the water in a controlled show of strength. He picked out one of the female swimmers. Evenly paced strokes and a perfectly crafted breathing pattern pulled him in, shutting out the world around him. She took a breath, then pull, pull, pull, pull, pull, breath. Hands entered into the water and pushed the it behind her. Stroke, stroke, stroke, stroke, stroke, breath. She reached the end of the lane, and with one last pull, she flipped. Strong legs pushed against the wall into a tight streamline before emerging just past the flags. Sneaking a quick breath, she began the pattern all over again.

Makoto watched, captivated by the rhythmic pattern of her workout for another 400 meters before she reached the end of that set. She glided into the wall and took a long drink from her water bottle before leaning back and allowing buoyancy to take over.

With that over, he turned his attention to the group on the other side of the pool. The sprinters were clamoring out of the water and lining up behind the blocks. He caught site of Haru, who was holding his cap away from his ear and jerking his head to one side. The movement made Maokoto grin as he recalled the few times they hadn't gotten the water out of their ears, only to develop swimmers ear later on down the road. Over the past couple of months, the intense workouts and additional dryland training had refined and toned his friend's body. Even from where he was sitting, Makoto could see how much Haru had physically changed.

Haruka was first up on the block in his lane, along with the other three lanes. There was a whistle and all three shifted into their preferred starting stance. Makoto could never hear everything that was being said down on the deck, but their coach must have said go, because all four shot off the blocks.

Watching the distance swimmer was mesmerizing. But watching Nanase Haruka swim was something else entirely. A quick entrance with a powerful streamline before surfacing. Quick, precise strokes sliced through the water speedily with legs producing a rooster tail of white water behind. His head remained motionless, not once turning to take a breath. All four of the swimmers were impressive. But Haru looked as though he was cooperating with the water, rather than fighting against it. As though he had, in some weird way, reached an understanding in which the water would simply move aside and let him through.

It was only a 50 meter sprint. Haruka finished 3 seconds before the second finisher.

Taking a huge gulp of air, he waited a few seconds before pulling himself out of the water and making his way to the other end of the pool.

This was his friend's world. A world full of chlorine, worn suits, and workouts. Makoto could argue that his future wasn't much different. But rather than trying to beat a 22 second personal best for a 50 free, he would be in the water, teaching children not to be afraid to submerge their heads.

The practice came to a close and, as always, he waited patiently for his friend to come out. The conversation with the pool attendant was always the same. They talked about his classes and possibly joining with the local pre-masters team. And as always, Makoto promised to think about it.

"Makoto." Haru's taciturn voice carried across the lobby where he carried his mesh bag with one hand while toweling his hair dry with the other. His swim bag was partially open. "You ready?"

"Of course." Waving good bye to the pool attendant, he adjusted his backpack as they exited the building. "You have a good workout?"

A small smile appeared on Haru's face. "Yeah."

"You did great on those last sprints," he commented has they headed toward the train station. "As always, nobody can beat you in the water, Haru-chan."

There was a beat before Haru's damp towel landed on his head.

"I told you not to call me that."

Fin.


End file.
